1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of portable coolers. More specifically, the present invention comprises a portable cooler with an integrated internal ice maker.
2. Description of the Related Art
Portable coolers have been widely used for transporting cold storage items—such as food and drinks—from one location to another for many years. Conventionally, a portable cooler is loaded with cold storage items along with a cooling medium—such as ice or frozen gel packages—to keep the inside of the cooler cold. Assuming the cooler remains closed and a sufficient amount of cooling medium is used, the cold storage items will remain at near freezing temperatures for a couple of days. However, it is not uncommon for the contents of the container to be accessed periodically over time as the contents are consumed. This repeated opening of the container allows ambient heat to enter the portable container and expedites the depletion of the cooling medium.
More recently, electrically-powered cooling elements have been employed in portable coolers to transfer heat out of the cooler. These devices are often configured to be powered by a 12 volt DC power source, such as a cigarette lighter of an automobile. Despite the existence of such powered transportable coolers, there remains a need for a portable cooler that is able to store cold storage items and make and store ice. While these cooling elements work well for keeping the cooler at near-freezing temperatures these cooling elements are not efficient enough to freeze ice. Therefore, it would be beneficial to provide a portable cooler that is capable of making ice and is small enough to be easily transported in a vehicle.